HomeCar NewsHyundai Creta, Verna help company get over 9k bookings since lockdown was...

Hyundai Creta, Verna help company get over 9k bookings since lockdown was relaxed

Out of the 9,000 bookings, a significant number was contributed by the 2020MY Creta and Verna facelift

Hyundai Motor India, like almost every other manufacturer in the country, has opened its dealerships in green and orange COVID-19 zones. The government had relaxed the lockdown protocols at the starting week of May and businesses were allowed to resume operations with proper adherence to safety and social-distancing guidelines.

COVID-19 is one of the biggest blows global automotive markets have ever witnessed as sales plummeted to an all-time low in the past couple of months. In April 2020, the Indian automotive industry faced zero units in the domestic market (except for a handful number of online sales). Several dealerships would have gone out of business completely if their parent OEMs had not stepped in with financial support.

Hyundai India reports that it has garnered almost 9,000 bookings after relaxing the lockdown measures. In a span of 22 days, the South Korean automaker has delivered over 5,600 cars and its service outlets have attended more than one lakh cars across 530 cities in the country.

2020 Hyundai Verna Facelift
BS6 Hyundai Verna facelift

The brand’s manufacturing facility in Chennai was reopened on May 8. Despite registering zero domestic sales in April, the company had exported 1,341 units in the same month — an impressive figure considering the current state of affairs and how confused global logistics are.

Out of these figures, a good amount was contributed by the all-new Creta mid-size crossover and facelifted Verna C-segment sedan. The former was launched just about a week before the first stage of lockdown while the latter debuted rather silently amidst the control measures.

On the other hand, the need to reduce physical contact has made OEMs concentrate on exclusive online sales platforms. Most of these dedicated portals let customers book a product, opt for a test drive, make the full payment and get the vehicle delivered at their doorsteps. Both test drives and deliveries will be conducted in a safe and sanitised environment. The platforms are designed in a way that throughout the buying process, only essential paperwork requires the customers’ presence (for signature).

Once matters settle down, Hyundai India plans to introduce the much-awaited 2020MY i20 hatchback. It was spotted on multiple occasions in the country in early test mule avatars around the same time as its global debut. Reports state that it would ditch the present ‘Elite’ tag. On the higher end of the portfolio, Hyundai apparently plans to bring the Palisade premium 7-seater SUV.

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